# Parent Emotion Socialization and Child Emotion Regulation in FASD

> **NIH NIH R34** · UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER · 2020 · $221,375

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) represent a major public health problem that affects 2 to 5 percent of
the U.S. population. Children with FASD have high rates of mental health problems that place a significant
burden on their families, local resources, and society. Problems with emotion regulation are implicated in most
mental health disorders. Few empirically-validated interventions exist for children with FASD. Research
suggests that child-focused interventions targeting emotion regulation in children with FASD are insufficient to
habilitate their emotion regulation skills to adaptive levels. The proposed study investigates a novel intervention
target to improve the emotion regulation and adaptive functioning of children with FASD. Research with other
populations provides ample evidence for the influence of parent emotion socialization on the development of
child emotion regulation and other outcomes. Parent emotion socialization is amenable to intervention and
results in improved child and parent outcomes in other populations. The overarching goal of the proposed
study is to test whether an existing emotion-focused parenting intervention improves parent emotion
socialization and child emotion regulation and behavior in children with FASD. In addition, this study will
investigate the parent emotion socialization attitudes and practices that are associated with more adaptive
emotion regulation in children with FASD. Study aims will be addressed in the context of a randomized
controlled trial with a delayed-waitlist control group. A total of 80 children (ages 4 to 12) with FASD and their
parents will be enrolled, and multi-level assessments (parent-report, observation, physiology) will be conducted
at three time points (baseline, immediate post-intervention, 3-month follow-up). Study hypotheses are: 1) that
specific parent and child characteristics will predict individual differences in the emotion socialization attitudes
and practices of parents raising children with FASD; 2) that specific parent emotion socialization attitudes and
practices are associated with more adaptive levels of emotion regulation in children with FASD; 3) that families
who receive the Tuning In To Kids intervention will demonstrate improved parent emotion socialization, child
emotion regulation, and child behavior in comparison to families in the waitlist control group; and 4) that parent
emotion socialization will mediate the intervention effect on child emotion regulation and behavior. Results of
this study will have a significant impact on the future development of parent training interventions with long-
range outcomes of improving child functioning and reducing the burden associated with mental health
problems in this population. The proposed study will also lay the foundation and guide more complex
developmental study of the parent and child factors that influence the development of emotion regulation in
children with FASD.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9882194
- **Project number:** 5R34AA025717-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER
- **Principal Investigator:** CHRISTIE Lynn McGee Petrenko
- **Activity code:** R34 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $221,375
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-03-15 → 2022-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9882194

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9882194, Parent Emotion Socialization and Child Emotion Regulation in FASD (5R34AA025717-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9882194. Licensed CC0.

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